Candidates Chess: Different time controls for men and women add intrigue

The Candidates chess tournament, which started in Cyprus on Sunday, has taken care that the men won’t lose on time. But only after the 41st move. Until that point, they may suffer as the principle of legendary Bobby Fischer is unfollowed, with a view to generate excitement arising out of a time scramble.

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In contrast, the women’s candidates, which will be played concurrently in the same hall, will have an increment of 30 seconds from the first move. But they get only 90 minutes for the first 40 moves while men get 120 minutes for the first 40 moves.





GM Swapnil Dhopade, one of the popular chess trainers in India, said, “They want to create some excitement. Especially when players are reaching move 40 and there is no increment of the clock. If one player is under time pressure then it is exciting to see whether the player completes 40 moves in a few seconds remaining without blundering anything. The time control in the open is an experiment to make chess more and more exciting!”

The variation in time control for men and women was there during the 2024 Candidates too.

Fischer invented his version of the digital clock which provided an option of increment per move made. The idea was to ensure that a player whose position is better on the board would be punished with a loss only if he continues to play below-par moves.

The principle of “lost on time” assumes that a player in better position will play moves favourable for his opponent and to his own detriment. The principle doesn’t apply if the opponent has no pawn or winning material remaining on the board. In such a case, the clock turning zero results in a draw.

IM, author and trainer V Saravanan said, “Different time control for different sections is indeed strange. FIDE might have done it after consultation with the participants. If not, it is a strange setup.”

Seven-time national champion Praveen Thipsay dubbed the decision ridiculous.

When argued that in practical terms men are getting 10 minutes more (120) than women’s 110 (with increment) for the first 40 moves, Thipsay differed. “Increment can’t be compared with time on hand,” he said, acknowledging lack of time for women too.
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